Station Square and Town Centre Transit, Yverdon-les-Bains
The Place d’Armes, located between the train station and the old town and flanked by important public buildings and cultural institutions, serves as the showcase of Yverdon-les-Bains. However, the area is currently dominated by car traffic. The Rue des Remparts and Rue de Lausanne form an important transit axis, which negatively affects the function of the square as a meeting place and shopping area—today it primarily serves as a parking lot. The agglomeration project aims to reduce transit traffic in the center through a system of tangents and improved conditions for public and local traffic. This creates an opportunity to enhance the entire train station, city center, and suburban area.
Based on a test planning phase, a master plan was developed. This plan better coordinates traffic (private motorized vehicles, public transport, bicycles, and pedestrians), public space, land uses, building structures, and new developments to create an attractive central area with high quality of stay. The tree-lined avenue surrounding the Place d’Armes in an east-west direction will be widened. This allows the Rue des Remparts to be shifted, creating more space in front of the old town for restaurants and shops. On the train station side, the tree avenue is interrupted to create a generous pedestrian connection (parvis de la gare). This establishes an attractive direct link between the old town and the station. At the same time, the old town becomes directly visible and experientially accessible as a magnificent panorama from the station. Parking spaces on the Place d’Armes will be reorganized and integrated into the design. The forecourts of the school building and theater are incorporated into the square design, making them better usable as a break area and terrace.
Traffic circulation around the station will be changed. Local private motorized traffic will be concentrated on Bahnhofstrasse, and access to parking lots will be via Rue des Remparts. Rue de Lausanne will become a secondary street, while Quai de la Thielle will complement the fine local access. Local buses will now stop on the old town side of the square, and regional buses on the station side. This arrangement optimally showcases the historic center and many special buildings (casino, theater, school building), and allows Rue des Remparts and Rue de Lausanne to better fulfill their role as meeting points and shopping streets.
